


not something wild to tame (but wild to run with)

by Dontfloatthe100



Series: for they have the same hiding place [1]
Category: The Pinkertons (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, Post-The Sweet Science, a little warning for violence but if you've seen that episode you know what i'm talking about, soulmate au where the marks on your soulmate's skin show up on yours
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-03
Updated: 2017-12-03
Packaged: 2019-02-10 05:37:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,809
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12905232
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dontfloatthe100/pseuds/Dontfloatthe100
Summary: Kate knew she had a soulmate.Everyone had a soulmate, it was a proven fact. She had read enough scientific publications to support that. And she trusted the evidence of her own eyes above all. She remembered when she was a child, when she woke up with scratches and bruises she knew she hadn't gotten herself. When she suddenly had marks on her knees that she knew were someone else's scrapes. When, on one memorable occasion, she showed up at her house with a black eye and her parents had fussed over her for an hour before realizing that it wasn't her black eye.She always thought her soulmate was either a klutz or an idiot.





	not something wild to tame (but wild to run with)

**Author's Note:**

> back on my pinkerton grind you know how it is. also if you want to see a picture of the real kate warne that i found go here http://all-that-is-interesting.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/kate-warne-watercolor.jpg
> 
> best,  
> Em

Kate knew she had a soulmate.   
  
Everyone had a soulmate, it was a proven fact. She had read enough scientific publications to support that. And she trusted the evidence of her own eyes above all. She remembered when she was a child, when she woke up with scratches and bruises she knew she hadn't gotten herself. When she suddenly had marks on her knees that she knew were someone else's scrapes. When, on one memorable occasion, she showed up at her house with a black eye and her parents had fussed over her for an hour before realizing it wasn't _her_ black eye.    
  
She always thought her soulmate was either a klutz or an idiot.    
  
However, it wasn't until years late that she found out it was the latter.    
  
(And of course it was, of course Kate would be saddled with the most infuriating, most childish, most pigheaded agent ever to grace the Pinkerton National Detective Agency.)    
  
It was the case with Henry, the case with the pugilists, that finally did her in, that finally opened her eyes to what she probably should've seen all along.    
  
Will was being beaten bloody. Henry was wailing on him and it took all of her strength not to step in between them and drag Will out of there, somewhere she could patch him up, pick up the pieces and glue them back together and move on from this. Another part of her wanted to step in and beat Henry herself. He had lied to her, betrayed her trust, made her believe in his innocence so much that she had interfered with the one thing that had made her life worthwhile.    
  
And as much as she hated him, all she could do was watch, and try not to bite her lip raw. She watched as Will gained the upper hand and finally landed a final blow. She watched as Henry fell and Will, barely able to stand let alone walk, was led away by Zeke Slayton.    
  
She rushed over to Henry who was gaining consciousness and she grabbed him by his collar.    
  
"You murdered them! You murdered those people, don't even deny it! But you didn't do it alone. Who helped you?" Kate yelled.    
  
"Katie..."   
  
"Don't call me that! You don't get to call me that anymore, not after this! Now, who are you working with?"    
  
"Hmm, I understand why Will likes you now. It should've been obvious from the start," Henry slurred, staring at Kate's face in a curious way.     
  
"Who are you working with!" Kate said again, tightening her grip on Henry's shirt.    
  
"Slayton. I use the foxglove, and he drowns them afterwards," Henry said finally. Kate let him go and his head fell back onto the wood floor with an audible thump.    
  
The realization dawned on her and everything made sense. Then, suddenly, a sickening dread crept up in her as she remembered where Will was in that moment. She got up as quickly as her dress would allow and made a beeline for the stairs. She went up the stairs as fast as her feet would take her and went down the hallway opening doors until finally she came to what must've been Slayton's room. She saw Slayton pushing Will into a bucket of water and she fired a bullet near his feet.    
  
"Next one's in your heart, Slayton!"    
  
Will fell onto his back, choking and gasping for air. She wanted to check on him, make sure he was alright, but if she move then Slayton, the coward, would bolt, and she couldn't let that happen.    
  
Slayton made some stupid claim about the sheriff eating out of the palm of his hand, and Lawrence, in a feat of good timing, burst into the room. The time after that was mostly a blur, at least until giving her final statement on the case and turning Henry and Slayton over to the sheriff.    
  
"You should go home, you both look terrible," Lawrence said, giving them both a meaningful look that Kate couldn't decipher. She wondered what he meant by that. Sure, she was still covered in dirt from Casey O'Brien's body, but she didn't feel tired, at least not yet. The adrenalin hadn't worn off yet. She walked with Will out of the sheriff's office and into the street before turning to him.   
  
"Will, I'm sorry," she said, deciding to bite the bullet and say it sooner rather than later.   
  
"What for?" Will asked. 

"I should've trusted you. I shouldn't have let my own feelings cloud my judgement. It's my fault this happened to you."

"Kate, you're human. And you have feelings, as much as you try to hide them. This is not your fault and I don't blame you," Will said, his voice sounding sincere.   
  
"Thanks," she said.   
  
"You're welcome. Now go home and get some sleep. You need it," Will said.   
  
"Yeah, you too."   
  
Kate turned away from him with a smile and began walking towards where her horse was tied up. She got about halfway there when she heard Will call out her name.   
  
"Yes?" Kate replied, turning around to face him.   
  
"I-- We're--"   
  
"We're what, Will?"   
  
Will looked away from her and muttered a 'nevermind.' She gave him a quizzical look and turned back around, ready to finally go home.   
  
One of the first things Kate did when she got home was change out of her clothing and into her nightgown. She wrinkled her nose at the earthy smell that seemed to permeate her dress. Next she brushed her hair out with her soft-bristled brush and set to filling a basin with water to wash her face. She moved the basin in front of her vanity mirror and picked up a cloth. She dipped the tip of the cloth into the water and lifted it to her face. She focused her gaze on her reflection in the mirror and she stopped dead in her tracks.   
  
There, on her face, were bruises. One under each eye, one across the left cheek. She had the mark of a split lip and one of a cut above her brow. She reached up to touch her skin, finding that they didn't hurt with any pressure she put on them. Of course they weren't her bruises, she would remember getting a beating this bad. In fact, she very clearly remembered the beating, but it wasn't her beating at all.    
  
She felt surprised at first, she didn't expect it to be him, of all people. Then a bit of relief because, despite his many, many faults, she could do worse. And she liked him, despite everything. He was good and kind and brave sometimes. And he cared about her. That's why he had gotten so angry earlier when she got knocked out by Casey O'Brien.    
  
But then she remembered their conversation earlier, when they parted ways, and all of these feeling were replaced by anger. Will was going to tell her, but he didn't for some stupid reason, and she wasn't going to let him get away with that. She ran from the room, not even bothering to change back into her clothing, and she put on her coat. She left the house in a rush, grabbing her horse from the stable and heading towards town.   
  
She arrived at Will's room not ten minutes later and she rapped on his door.    
  
"William Pinkerton, I swear to G-d if you don't open this door within the next five seconds I will take all of your hair pomade and throw it down the outhouse toilet!"    
  
"Hold your horses! Jesus, can't a man get a little bit of shut eye in this town?" Will grumbled as he got out of bed and walked towards the door. He opened it to find Kate in her night gown and coat standing at his door, face red. She swept past him and entered the room, stopping next to his bed.   
  
"Well, come on in," he said sarcastically.   
  
"Why didn't you tell me we were soulmates?" Kate asked, cutting to the chase.   
  
Will's eyes widened. "I didn't--"   
  
"You didn't what? Didn't think I would notice? Didn't think I would go home and wash my face and look at myself in the mirror like a normal person?" Kate yelled. Will flinched at her tone.   
  
"I wasn't thinking," Will said.   
  
"Yeah, you weren't."    
  
"Kate, I'm sorry."   
  
"Why didn't you say anything? We're partners, Will. And soulmates, apparently. You can tell me anything," Kate said, lowering her voice.    
  
"I should've told you the moment I noticed."   
  
"Why didn't you?"   
  
"I thought-- I thought you would leave me. You, you never have attachments, you know? You're so separate from it all because that's what the job demands and goddammit you love this job more than anything. It's your whole life. And if you knew we were-- if you knew we were soulmates I was afraid you would see it as a conflict of interest and request a transfer, and I can't--"

"Can't what, Will?" Kate asked, almost a whisper.   
  
"I can't bare to lose you. I could've lost you today, when O'Brien knocked you out. I got so angry because I wasn't there to protect you. I had gotten so caught up in my stupid power trip that I didn't even think twice about sending you into a dangerous situation without back up, and I know you can take care of yourself, don't give me that look, but goddamnit you shouldn't have to!"   
  
Will took a deep breath and lowered his voice, almost to a whisper. "That's why I didn't tell you earlier. It was stupid, but I thought if I could prolong the inevitable, if I could keep you around for just a few more hours, I would be satisfied. It was selfish, and I'm sorry."    
  
Will stared at her, trying to gauge her reaction. Kate was stunned for a few moments before she shook her head in disbelief.   
  
"You really are an idiot, Will Pinkerton," she said.   
  
"What?"   
  
"You don't-- you don't get to make decisions like that for me! That's not your call. We're partners, and I'm not going anywhere soon so you can expect to be my partner for a long time. If things like this happen, that affect both of us, I expect that you're open about it with me. We're soulmates, Will. That changes things, but it doesn't change the fact that we're partners, through thick and thin, no matter what. Do you understand me?"    
  
Will looked stunned and nodded.    
  
"And for the record, Will, I can't bare to lose you either," she said.   
  
At that, Will smiled and she smiled back at him. She didn't know how this would work, if it would work, but she knew one thing for certain: young Kate was right, her soulmate was an idiot.

But she liked him all the same.


End file.
